How long have you been with VLS?
5 Years Freelance Installer Lighting and Rigging 1 Year as an Assistant Project Manager
Hometown?
Youngstown, Ohio
What do you like most about the lighting industry?
I like the ability to create a product that people appreciate. Like when a student walks out on to a brand new stage for the first time and has new curtains or is standing in the beams of new LED theatrical lighting, and they feel like they’re on Broadway, that creates a bit of pride.
Who inspires you?
I’d say my rigging installers are my biggest inspiration at VLS. I want to work hard and do a good job so things are running smoothly for them and everyone else.
What advice would you give to someone who wants to enter the lighting industry?
Never stop learning about the industry. It’s always evolving. Sometimes it’s a huge leap but sometimes it’s something small. At the same time, learn from the older generations as much as you learn from the new. Sometimes a new method needs inspiration from the past.
What’s one thing — either industry-related or not — you learned in the last month?
Take breaks for yourself because no one else will do it for you.
What’s something about you (a fun fact) that not many people know?
I started in theater from the orchestra pit playing shows on keyboards or one of eight other instruments I play.
What’s the last book you read?
“A Woman is No Man” by Etaf Rum
What is your favorite hobby?
I like to dabble in cooking.
What’s the first concert you ever attended?
Youngstown Symphony 1986ish Benjamin Britten’s The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra
What’s the next place on your travel bucket list?
Alaska in 2024. I want to save up for about 2 weeks of travel. Gates of the Artic National Park
If you had to eat one meal every day for the rest of your life, what would it be?
Halupki (Stuffed Cabbage)
What’s one item you can’t live without?
2 items; a Pencil and Paper
